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3 min readFeb 11, 2026 07:45 PM IST
Namibia's captain Gerhard Erasmus reacts after loosing his wicket during the T20 World Cup cricket match between Namibia and Netherlands in New Delhi, India, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus was displeased that his side was not allotted a practice session at night at the Arun Jaitley Stadium before the T20 World Cup fixture against India on Thursday.
Echoing the concerns made by their coach, Craig Williams, following their defeat to the Netherlands at the same ground on Tuesday, Erasmus said that the vastly lower-ranked side needed all the help they could get before going up against Suryakumar Yadav’s formidable India. Especially considering that back home, there was no infrastructure to play under the lights, and many of Namibia’s players have had little to no experience of playing day-night matches.
“We haven’t got any night games or day and night games in Namibia. Infrastructure-wise, maybe that is the big challenge for us,” Erasmus told reporters on the eve of the game on Wednesday. “Barring the guys that have played in the Nepal Premier League or the ILT20, or at a World Cup before, not many are accustomed to playing under the lights.”
“We have not been given a night training before this game. India had two, and today, Canada (before their match against the UAE on Friday) has one too. Make of that what you want… We are just going to rock up and do it the Namibian way, which is to fight,” he added.
Erasmus was still overjoyed about the prospect of facing a team of India’s quality in a World Cup on their soil, agreeing that for many in the team, it would be the biggest match of their careers.
“I think it’s a big moment. We are no stranger to the players, we see them on TV a lot. In the IPL and in international cricket. So you kind of know who you are going to face,” he said. “But I think in terms of exposure, and in terms of the size of the event that it is, it’s going to be a very good experience for the younger players to play under the lights in front of 40,000 noisy fans. It’s going to be very cool.”
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